Video Transcript
Saprophytic organisms are useful
because they break down dead bodies. They are also useful because they
what. (A) Keep prey numbers down, (B)
kill weak prey, (C) produce food, (D) recycle nutrients.
To answer the question, let’s start
by identifying what saprophytic organisms, also known as saprophytes, actually
are. Saprophytes are a type of
decomposer that includes some types of fungi and bacteria. Saprophytes break down organisms
that are already dead. We know from the question that they
break down dead bodies. Now we need to identify what the
other useful thing that they do is.
Let’s think about option (A). Do saprophytes keep prey numbers
down? This would require them to actively
kill the prey, which would make them predators. We already know that saprophytes
are decomposers, which decompose already dead organisms. Saprophytes are not predators, so
this option cannot be correct.
Now let’s take a look at option
(B). Do saprophytes kill weak prey? As we have already discussed,
predators kill prey and saprophytes are decomposers, not predators. Remember that decomposers break
down organisms that are already dead. They do not kill them. So option (B) is incorrect.
Now let’s take a look at option
(C). Do saprophytes produce food? Remember that saprophytes are
decomposers. Only organisms that are producers,
such as plants, can produce food. So option (C) is incorrect.
Now let’s take a look at our last
option, option (D). Do saprophytes recycle
nutrients? To determine if this is correct,
let’s look back at the information we have already been given. We were told by the question that
saprophytes break down dead bodies. When dead bodies are broken down,
the nutrients stored in them are returned to the soil.
So the correct answer is “recycle
nutrients.” Saprophytic organisms are also
useful because they recycle nutrients.
